1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a brush holder having a support element to which at least one carbon cartridge is attached, a carbon brush being held therein so as to be displaceable. Further, an electrical fixed contact that is electrically connected to the carbon brush by a cord is attached to the support element. A connection element is provided between the cord and the fixed contact and has crimping means at a first end which defines a crimping receptacle in which the cord is secured. At a second end, the connection element has plug-in means which can be connected to complimentary plug-in means of the fixed contact.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When assembling brush holders of the type mentioned above, the carbon brushes are mounted in the respective carbon cartridges with the cord already pressed on. The carbon brushes are then connected to the fixed contact by the connection element so that voltage can be applied to them during operation. The plug-in connection between the cord and the fixed contact allows for a particularly simple assembly.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,610,467 discloses a brush holder in which two carbon cartridges are fastened to a support plate. Each of the carbon brushes guided therein has a cord, and a connection element has a contact ring crimped onto the cord at its ends remote of the carbon brush. This contact ring can be secured to the support plate by a rivet, the support plate being inserted through the contact ring and into a receiving opening for this purpose. The rivet is then electrically connected to a connection cable.
It is disadvantageous in the known brush holder that the mechanical fastening to the support plate and the electrical connection to the connection cable are relatively complicated. In addition, the specially shaped parts of the plug-in connection result in relatively high production costs.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,757 shows an inexpensive electric plug-in connection. It has a connection element which is fastened to a cord at a first end by crimping means. At a second end, the connection element forms a plug-in receptacle into which a contact tongue can be inserted to produce an electrical contact.
A plug-in connection of the type mentioned above is particularly simple to produce, particularly when the contact tongue is easily accessible. However, to prevent the cord wire from breaking when used at a brush holder, it must be ensured over the lifetime of the carbon brush that the cord exiting from the connection element is curved only in a relatively large arc in direction of the carbon brush. In particular when the contact tongue projects from the brush holder in a relatively exposed manner, there must be a relatively large free installation space within which the cord can move as the carbon brush is used up without getting caught on other structural component parts in order to ensure good accessibility during production of the plug-in connection.